1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data communication service and, more particularly, to a data communication service using a call connection networking.
2. Description of the Background Art
First- and second-generation mobile communication provides voice-centered service, while the third-generation provides various types of services such as a data service and a multimedia service as well as voice service, for which communication service providers adjust a billing system and a billing reference to the changing service environment.
With the billing system changing, a billing amount of the voice service is calculated depending on service use time, and a billing amount of the data service is calculated depending on a provided data amount (referred to as ‘the number of packets’, hereinafter).
In general, a radio data service is provided in such manner that information of a network server is directly downloaded to a mobile communication terminal or that information of the network server is downloaded to a terminal equipment (TE) such as a personal computer (PC) or a notebook computer. In the second manner, the mobile communication terminal is simply functioned as a modem.
FIG. 1 shows information displayed on a screen of a terminal when a call connection networking is performed in accordance with a conventional art.
As shown in FIG. 1, with the conventional mobile communication terminal, only a connection time (or a call time) of a corresponding service is displayed regardless of types of services (e.g., a call service, a data service or a multimedia service).
FIG. 2 illustrates a call connection networking procedure using the mobile communication terminal.
As shown in FIG. 2, the TE (Terminal Equipment), referring to the personal computer (PC) or a notebook computer, includes a screen easily recognizably by a user and a manipulation-easy device. A mobile terminal (MT) signifies a mobile communication terminal and serves as a modem of the TE.
When the TE intends to download desired information or data from a specific server, it attempts a connection to the MT 20 (step S1).
When the TE 10 and the MT 20 are connected, the TE 10 transfers a data service start request message to the MT 20 (step S2).
Upon receiving the start request message from the TE 10, the MT 20 sets a channel to a packet data serving node (PDSN) 30 or an inter-working function (IWF) (step S3).
As the channel is set, the MT 20 transfers a service activation message to the TE 10. Upon receiving the service activation message, the TE 10 starts uploading and downloading of data from the PDSN 30 (step S4).
When the data transmission is completed and the data service is terminated, the TE 10 transfers a service termination request message to the MT 20 (step S5).
Then, the MT 20 releases the set channel to the PDSN 30 (step S6) and transfers a non-activation message on the data service to the TE 10.
Upon receiving the data service non-activation message, the TE transfers a connection release request message to the MT 20 to release connection to the MT 20 (step S7).
In case of the voice service, a communication provider calculates duration (that is, a communication channel occupancy time) from the point when the communication channel was set between the MT 20 and the PDSN 30 to the point of releasing of the communication channel, and estimates a billing amount according to the calculated time.
Meanwhile, in the case of the data service, the communication provider calculates the number of packets from the point when the communication channel was set between the MT 20 and the PDSN 30 to the point of releasing of the communication channel, and estimates a billing amount according to the calculated number of packets.
However, in the conventional art, all the information the MT provides to a user is merely the call time (or the connection time) as information for the billing amount estimation or on the service use amount. This makes the user totally dependent on the information of the communication provider as far as concerned the billing amount of the data service.
The above references are incorporated by reference herein where appropriate for appropriate teachings of additional or alternative details, features and/or technical background.